Refrigerator-car ice bunker



June 3, 1 Z4- 1,496,593

K. F. NYs'rRbM REFRIGERATOR CAR ICE BUNKER Filed June 2. 1923 2Sheets-Sheet 13min);

M I mm June 3, 1924. 1,496,593

K. F. NYSTROM REFRIGERATQR CAR ICE BUNK1JR Filed June 2, 1923' 2Sheets-Sheet 2 rnferi r? Patented June 3, 19,24.

x r. msrnom, or cmcaeo, mmors.

REFRIGERATOR-CAR ICE BUNKER.

Application filed June 2,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, KARL F. NYsTRoM, a subject of Great Britain,andaresident of Chicago, in the-county of Cook "and State of Illinois,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Refrigerator-CarIce Bunkers, of which the following is a description, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of my specification.

My invention relates to the ice holding chambers or bunkers of a.railroad refrigerator car and has for its object the provision of aconstruction whereby a greater radiation is provided and at the sametime a more uniform low temperature in the car proper is maintained.

My invention, more specifically stated,

' contemplates a particular t pe of ice holding container or basket aaptable to the ice holding chamber or bunker, whereby a graduatedradiating surface is provided which will normally present a greaterradi' ating surface than has heretofore been the case and wherebyincreased air circulation will be obtained as the ice in the bunkerthaws or becomes reduced.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a bunker providedwith metallic walls or partitions and wherein metallic elements areemployed, which will maintain proper spaced relation between the iceholding container or basket and the inner side and end walls of the carand the bulkhead.

A further object of my invention is to provide a construction wherebythe tonnage or quantity of ice for initial charging will be materiallyreduced while at the same time obtaining the desired temperature,because of the increased or larger radiating surface provided; with theresult that a great saving in refrigerating cost is not only secured buta considerable reduction in the quantity of ice necessary is alsoobtained.

The objects and advantages of my invention will be readily apparent fromthe following detailed description of the accompanying drawings, whereinFigure 1 is a sectional elevation taken from within the bunker or icechamber of a refrigerator car, with the left hand side showing thehatch-way and ice holding container or basket in section; the latterbeing 1923. Serial No. 648,023.

broken away at the right hand side and showing a portion of thebulkhead.

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1looking in the direction of the arrows. y

In the. particular exemplification of the invention, the ice holdinchamber or bunker of a refrigerator car is s own, with the walls of thecar formed in the usual manner, consisting of the inner and outersheathing 5 and 6, respectively, with suitable insulating material 7therebetween; a bulkhead 8 of suitable material being arrangedtransversely of the car at a suitable distance removed from the end wallof the car. The bulkhead 8 is formed to provide air circulating openings9 and lO at top and bottom, respectively, as more clearly shown inFigure 3, to permit of'proper air circulation and therefore to enablethe desired chilling or refrigeration of the main portion of the carinterior and the merchandise therein.

The bunkers or icing chambers are provided with suitable hatchways as at11 which are closed with cover members and plugs as at 12. The bunkercomprises a suitable ice holding container or basket, the.

side and end walls whereof are preferably composed of foraminatedmaterial or suitable wire mesh as at 13 which is provided at suitableintervals with metallic members or bars 14, shown in the nature ofZ-bars, see Figure 2, disposed from top to bottom at suitable distancesapart; the wire mesh or foraminated material 13 being shown secured tothe Z-bars or posts 14 by means of the metallic clamping strips 15,disposed on the inside of the basket, which are bolted or riveted to theZ-bars.

The bottom of the bunker or basket comprises a number of metallic beamsor channels 16, suitably spaced apart and disposed transversely. Thesebeams 16 are adapted to support suitable racks 17 which constitute theice holding bottom of the container or basket. The end beams or channels16 are secured to and supported by suitable shoes or castings 18 whichare adapted to maintain a spaced relation between thebottom of thecompartment or'drip pan of the bunker and the ice-holding racks 17 ofthe basket. The shoes 18,- at opposite ends of the basket, namely at thecorners thereof, are preferably each formed with a ledge or shoulder asat 19 on which the end beam or channel 16 rests and also with anupstanding flange or lip 20 adapted to extend flush with the outer sideof the channel to which it is preferably secured by bolts, rivets, orotherwise. The beams or channels 16, intermediate of the ends of thebasket, rest on and are secured to the metallic blocks or shoes 21 whichare provided with an upstanding portion 22 adapted to extend between theparallelly arranged adjacently placed beams or channels 16 and to besecured thereto in any suitable manner, as for example by bolts 23disposed transversely through the adjacent'channels 16 and the.upstanding portion 22 of the shoes.

The shoes 18 and 21 are adapted to rest in the drip pan, shown at 24,adjacent to the sides thereof and may be secured to the pan; the shoesbeing also formed to provide means whereby a rigid connection with theposts of the bulkhead is obtained.

The ends of the bottom beams or channels 16 are preferably made toextend slightly beyond the sides of the basket so as to extend flushwith the; sides of the studding or vertical posts 25 of the end wall ofthe car 'and with the posts 26 of the bulkhead as more clearly shown inFigure 2.

It is apparent that the arrangement of the elements as just describedprovides a rigid and firm connection and with the reenforcing Z-bars orposts 14 and the upstanding flanges or lips 20 of the end shoes 18,maintain a spaced relation between the basket and the walls of thebunker whereby proper circulation of air may be obtained.

My improved basket is provided with a suitable number of transversepartitions or metallic walls which are arranged to constitute airpassages or flues preferably of graduated height. For example, thebasket as illustrated in the drawings is shown provided With three airpassages or flues 27, 28 and 29 arranged at suitabledistances apartintermediate of the ends of the basket. These fines are composed of theend walls 30, 30 shown preferably of metallic channels disposed inwardlyand an intermediate reenforcing channel 31, while the side walls of thefines are preferably composed of suitable mesh or foraminated metal 32,which will prevent the refrigerant or ice from getting into the airpassages or fiues.

The flues 27 and 29, at opposite ends, are preferably of similar heightand arranged to terminate a distance below the top of the basket; whilethe intermediate flue 28 is preferably arranged to extend to the top ofthe basket as shown in Figures 1 and 3.

All of the fines are made to lead down bene ates tween the adjacentlyarranged beams or channels 16 and open at the bottom so as tocommunicate with the air space 33 beneath the bottom of the .basket.

The tops of the flues are preferably closed by means of the gabled sheetmetal caps 34 which extend from'end to end of the fines; the caps 34being-preferably formed as shown to shed the ice and prevent itsbecoming lodged thereon when it thaws and recedes from the top-of thebasket. The end walls or channels 30 of the fiues are disposed withinthe basket,,thus enabling the Wire mesh side walls 13 of the basket tobe continuous throughout the length of the basket if desired. Theforaminated sides 32 of the fines are suitably secured to the end wallsor channels 30 and the intermediate channels 31, by means of themetallic strips 35 which are preferably bolted to the sides or flangesof the channels as shown in Figures 2 an 3.

,The flues 27 28 and 29 provide a plurality of air chambers whereby anadditional radiating surface is obtained which materially increases therefrigerating efliciency over constructions as heretofore employed;while the varying height of flues provides a graduated radiating orchilling surface as the tops and side walls of the respective finesbecome uncovered through the thawing of the'ice.

As the quantity of ice becomes reduced below the maximum supply of thebasket, the upper ends of the different fines are uncovered, allowingthe air at the top of the bunker to pass downwardly through the flues;in other words, as the quantity of refrigerant diminishes the radiatingsurface gradually increases and as a result a more uniform circulationof air is, produced.

As a result of my improved construction, the refrigerating efficiency ismaterially increased; the number of replenishings and therefore thequantity of ice materially reduced, and agreater uniformity of lowtemperature i the car obtained than has heretofore been t e case,because of the graduated radiating surface and the practically constantair circulation as the ice supply diminishes. i

The upper end of. the foraminated side walls of the basket disposedtoward thebulkhead 8, coincident with the opening or air passage 9, ispreferably provided with a covering of finer mesh wire or screen, as at36, extending throughout the width of the opening 9, for the purpose ofpreventing the splashing of ice into the car proper through opening 9while the containers are being charged and at the same time preventingin sects or fiies entering the car proper when the hatch cover and plugare raised or removed from the hatch opening.

The racks 17 of the basket are of size sufficient to fit, respectively,between the end walls of the basket and the adjacent fines 27 mes es and28 and between the fines 27 and 29 and between the flue 29 and theintermediate flue 28, the ends of the racks resting on the transversebeams of the basket and being held in place by any suitable means, asfor example by the hook-bolts 37 which pass through suitable aperturesin the flanges or sides of the respective channel beams 16 as shown inFigure 3.

My invention, which has for one of its objects the provision of areceptacle provided with air flues or ducts, has been illustrated in theform of a receptacle or basket having wire mesh walls and with flueshaving wire mesh walls; but it is apparent that the main walls of thereceptacle, as well as those of the flues, may be formed of othermaterial and the number of flues or'ducts may be varied without;departing from the spirit of my invention, which has been described interms employed merely as terms of description and not as terms oflimitation.

What I claim is 2- 1. A refrigerator car ice bunker, comprising anice-holding foraminated container provided with bottom members or beamsarranged transversely, with the. members or beams intermediate of theends of the container being arranged in pairs, at predetermineddistances apart, and partitions arranged transversely of the containerat points coincident with the diflerent pairs of ottom members or beams,each partition being composed of spaced walls to provide an air flueterminating at the bottom of said members or beams and having openingsin and in spaced relation, the transversely disthe side walls thereof.

2. A refrigerator car ice bunker, comprising a metallic containerprovided with spacing blocks or shoes secured to the container bottomwhereby the container is supported abovethe car-floor and in spacedrelation with the walls of the car, the container being provided withtransversely disposed walls secured to the side walls intermediate ofthe ends of the container and arranged in pairs posed walls extendingbeneath the inner iceholding bottom of the container to providevertically disposed air ducts or flues having their lower ends open tothe space beneath the container bottom.

3. In a refrigerator car ice bunker, comprising an ice-holding containerhaving foraminated walls and intermediate transversely disposedforaminated walls arranged in pairs and spaced relation to providevertically disposed air ducts or flues, the side walls of the containerintermediate of the transverse walls of each pair being imperforate,while the transverse walls are extended beneath the ice-holding bottomof the container.

4. A refrigerator car ice bunker, comprising an ice-holding containerprovided with foraminated walls and transversely extending metallicwalls arranged in pairs and secured to the side walls to providevertical air flues open at the bottom, the wallsof the different pairsextending to different heights in the container, and imperforate spacingmembers between the walls of each pair arranged at the sides of thecontainer.

5. In a refrigerator car ice bunker, a metallic ice-holdingcontainerprovided with rack supporting beams disposed transversely, with thebeams intermediate of the ends of the container arranged in spacedpairs, supporting shoes secured to said beams whereby the container isheld in spaced relation with the car-floor and in spaced relation withthe walls of the car, the shoes secured to the intermediate beams beingadapted to maintain spaced relation between the beams of each pair,partitions extending from side to side of the container at pointscoincident" with the beams arranged in pairs to constitute air flues orducts open at the bottom of the container, and means at opposite ends ofthe partitions of each pair whereby spaced relation of said partitionsis maintained and closures for the fines at the sides of the containerprovided.

6. In a refrigerator car ice bunker, an ice-holding wire basket, thebottom whereof is provided with transversely arranged beams inpredetermined spaced relation, iceholding' racks removably secured onsaid beams, supporting shoes secured to said beams for supporting thebasket in spaced relation with the car-floor, a plurality of perforatedpartitions extending transversely of the basket and secured to the sidewalls thereof, said partitions being arranged in pairs, with thepartitions of each pair spaced apart and extending from the beams at thebottom of the basket, the one pair of partitions extending to a heightdiflerentfrom that of the other, imperforate spacing means at. the endsof the partitions of each pair and at the sides of .the basket wherebyair flues within the basket are provided open at the sides and bottoms,and a closure for the tops of said flues.

- 7. In a refrigerator car ice bunker, a foraminated ice-holding basketprovided with bottom beams disposed transversely beyond the sides of thebasket and adapted to engage with the studding of the side walls of thebunker, supporting shoes secured to said beams to maintain the basket inspaced relation with the car-floor, a plurality of foraminated metallicpartitions disposed transversely of and secured to the side walls of thebasket, arranged in pairs and extending beneath the inner bottom of thebasket, the partitions of one pair extending to a diflerent height fromthat of the other pair, spacing members secured between the partitionsof each pair whereby air passage between the partitions at the sides ofthe basket is prevented, and a closure member secured to the upper endsof the respective partitions of each pair.

- 8. In a refrigerator car ice-bunker, an iceholdin wire basket,metallic angle members Secure to the outer sides of the basket formaintaining the basket in s aced relation with the Walls of-the bunker,earns secured to the bottom of the basket extending beyond the sides toen age with opposite sides of the posts or stud ing of the car andbulkhead, supporting shoes secured to the beams to maintain the"basketin spaced relation with the car-floor and adapted to support thevertical posts or studding of the bulkhead, the basket being providedwith transversely disposed partitions arranged in pairs and extendingvertically from the bottom, with the partitions of different pairsextending to different heights, spacing members secured between thepartitions of each pair at opposite sides of the basket for pre-,

venting passage of air betweenfthe pair of partitions at the sides ofthe basket, and a closure member at the top of each pair 0 partitions.

4 KARL F. NYSTROM. Witnesses G. HEIDMAN, F. A. FLORELL.

